Published in 2005, The Legacy of Lassie is the only book published devoted to Lassie collectibles. The world's most famous dog has a legacy that began in 1938 and is still going strong in 2007. The Legacy of Lassie contains over 1000 black and white photos of nothing but Lassie collectibles, from items that are still easy to find, to one of a kind items that are in no other collection but the author's. The foreword is by Jon Provost, who portrayed Timmy on the Lassie show from 1957 - 1964. The author's Lassie collection is the largest single Lassie collection in the world. Karen Pfeiffer has been a consultant to various film companies where Lassie collectibles were used in documentaries on Animal Planet. This book is available through Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com, and other retail book outlets.

The Romance of the Collie is a nonfiction work devoted to the loyal collies that are part of our everyday life. This book includes chapters on Sunnybank and Albert Payson Terhune, the wonderful and prolific writer of collie stories; Terhune's famous Sunnybank collies; Lassie, the most famous collie and dog in the world; Shep, the collie that waited for his master at a train station for years; Bobbie, the real-life come-home collie; Reveille, the
Texas A&M mascot; collie heroes; collies in literature; collies in art; collies in a child's world; and many other stories of a collie's loyalty.
The book will include vintage collie ads, postcards, and photos. The foreword is by Robert Weatherwax, owner and trainer of Lassie and other Hollywood dogs. Book in progress!

This cover represents one of the finest collies that has ever lived. He was not famous, he was not an AKC champion, but he was a champion to me. He was my best friend for the eleven years that I was blessed to have him. He is now gone, but he will always be the collie that lives in my heart.

Colin came to me at the age of six weeks, a shy introverted puppy. It's always been said that one should never pick the shy puppy in the litter. This puppy was shy, but I had to have him. He had a lot of the markings that Lassie carried, and I thought he was beautiful. His shyness lasted no more than two days after we brought him home. He became a happy, well-adjusted puppy that loved to learn things.

Colin was meant to be my son's dog and best friend and so he named him after his favorite British actor, Colin Baker. But, Colin had other ideas and became my best friend and shadow.

We worked in obedience for two years before I ever took him to a class. We worked on different commands and he never took over 15 minutes to permanently learn any new command he was given. I've never worked with another dog that has learned as fast as Colin did. He eagerly learned all new commands, but there was one that I taught him that he thoroughly hated and that was the command "Crawl". He acted humiliated when I had him follow that command. It seemed to bother him so much that I dropped it and never made him do it again.

Colin was a gentle giant. He had a thyroid problem, which the vet said was rare for collies. He became heavy for a collie, but his huge, thick coat made him look much larger than he really was. Because of his thick, luxurious coat, the cats all loved him and would sit on his back for hours when it was cold outside. Colin loved being outside in the cold weather and would stay for hours if I would let him. The cats would climb on his back and sleep the day away in comfort. Visitors loved seeing Colin with his cats.

I worked with Colin in pet therapy and we would visit patients in the local nursing home and at the hospital. They all loved to see him and would gather round. He was fine with people as long as they were not in wheelchairs. He was not frightened of wheelchairs, but he was always watching out for his tail. He was afraid that it was going to get run over, and so my main focus when he was in a group of patients in wheelchairs was looking out for his tail. That seemed to comfort him and he became more comfortable, knowing that his tail was being guarded.

Colin and I went places together and did everything together, until he became sick in 2005 and had a hard time getting around. He could no longer climb into the van and we had to totally curtail our outside activities. But, we had each other at home, and that was very important.

Colin died in May, 2007, and I still miss him. I don't think that I will ever quit missing that great collie. The Romance of the Collie is dedicated to him and to his memory.

Lassie is, by far, the world's most recognized collie. Almost everyone that has ever owned a sable-and-white collie realizes this fact when their collie is called 'Lassie'.

Lassie's story starts in December, 1938, as a short story published in the Saturday Evening Post entitled Lassie Come-Home. The John C. Winston Company, a small publishing company, read the story and asked author Eric Knight to expand it into a novel. He expanded the short story and it was released in 1940. It immediately became a bestseller.

At this same time, Rudd Weatherwax, a dog trainer in Hollywood, was hoping to find the one special dog that would become a Hollywood star. He had no idea that dog would soon enter his life in the form of an undisciplined collie pup named Pal.

Pal's owners wanted their collie pup to become a model canine citizen. He barked all the time and he loved to chase motorcycles. He was first sent to another trainer, but eventually was sent to Rudd. Rudd managed to get the barking under control, but Pal chased motorcycles for the rest of his life.

Pal's owners decided that they did not want him back and let Rudd have him in exchange for the training fee. This was a decision they would come to regret.

After Lassie Come-Home was published, MGM bought the rights to the novel. Rudd overheard talk of this while walking on the MGM lot one day. He knew a collie would be needed and he had one that had great potential. He had loaned Pal out to an actor friend of his that lived on a farm, not expecting the collie to be needed any time soon. He reclaimed Pal and started working with him.

When auditions were held for the starring role of Lassie, Rudd was there with Pal. He was turned down because his coat was not in good enough condition and the talent scouts also did not like the blaze that ran down his face. Also, they said that he was a male and Lassie was a female.

Rudd did not give up and went to work on Pal, getting him conditioned and ready for another audition. Again, he was disqualified, but he was chosen as the stunt double.

As filming began on Lassie Come Home, the starring role of Lassie was being played by a female show collie.

A few weeks into filming a scene was to be filmed with Lassie swimming the flooded San Joaquin River. The female collie refused to get into the water and the crew panicked. The collie's owner could do nothing to entice the dog into the water.

Rudd Weatherwax pointed out the fact that Pal would swim the stream. The crew agreed to give him a chance. Rudd worked with Pal for an hour and declared him ready.

Rudd gave Pal the cue to jump into the river. Pal did and the scene was flawlessly done. After Pal completed the scene, director Fred Wilcox went up to Rudd and stated, "That dog that jumped into the river may have been Pal, but it was Lassie who crawled out. Your dog is my star."

Lassie Come Home became a major hit and Pal/Lassie became a major star.

In 1942, MGM drew up a new contract for Pal and Rudd, giving them $500 monthly when filming movies and $300 per month when not filming. This contract was for five years. As more Lassie films were made, MGM kept increasing Rudd's payment.

A succession of Lassie movies were made. The years and titles are:
1945 - Son of Lassie
1946 - Courage of Lassie
1948 - Hills of Home
1949 - The Sun Comes Up
1950 - Challenge to Lassie
1951 - The Painted Hills

From 1946 - 1949 Lassie had his own radio show.

Lassie, as the star, got to act with a wide assortment of co-stars, including: Donald Crisp, Edmund Gwenn, Roddy McDowall, Elizabeth Taylor, Peter Lawford, June Lockhart, and Janet Leigh.

By the 1950's, the public's attention was turning elsewhere and MGM quit promoting Lassie. Rudd knew that Lassie deserved better and so a deal was made with MGM and he bought the Lassie trademark from them. He was now in control of Lassie's destiny.

After becoming sole owner of the Lassie trademark, Rudd and Pal/Lassie set out on a nationwide tour. Pal loved performing in front of the public and drew crowds everywhere he went.

Robert Maxwell, a Hollywood producer, was paying attention to Lassie and realized that Lassie had a big public following. He approached Rudd with an idea for a television series starring Lassie.

Rudd saw the potential of what the series could become and offered his own ideas for the show.

A cast was assembled for the pilot of the show. Included was Jan Clayton, a Broadway actress, who was given the part of Ellen Miller, a widow and mother of a young son. The son, Jeff Miller, was played by Tommy Rettig, a veteran of several movies. The grandfather, Gramps, was portrayed by George Cleveland, an old pro in show business, appearing in more than two hundred movies.

Pal played Lassie in the pilot and in one other episode, but he was almost fourteen-years-old, and even though he loved performing, Rudd did not want to put him through the grueling daily routine of filming. Pal's son, Lassie Jr., was trained and ready to take over the role of Lassie. In 1954, Lassie Jr. took over and continued the legacy that began with Pal.

CBS liked the pilot and signed on. Filming began in 1954. The Campbell Soup Company signed on as sole sponsor of the Lassie show and stayed on board for the entire 20-year run of the show.

The Miller family of Calverton were Lassie's owners and were involved in many different kinds of adventures from 1954 - 1958.

By 1957, Tommy Rettig was growing up and was ready for a change in his life. He wanted out of the show. The producers knew that a change was needed and a small orphan was introduced to the audience. That small boy was Timmy, played by Jon Provost, a veteran of several movies.

Lassie's loyalty was moving to Timmy for the show's transition. Also, something unforeseen happened - George Cleveland, who played Gramps, died unexpectedly.

Ellen and Jeff Miller decided to sell the family farm and move to the city. The farm was sold to a young couple named Paul and Ruth Martin, who adopted small Timmy. Jeff gave Lassie to Timmy so she could continue living on the farm. The stage was now set for the future of the Lassie show.

In 1958, the Lassie show went through its first cast change. The Miller family left and the farm was taken over by Paul and Ruth Martin, played by Jon Shepodd and Cloris Leachman.

Life on the set was tense and often unhappy. Cloris Leachman refused to sign her contract. She also refused to do any promoting of the show and she was curt and offensive to the sponsor, Campbell's Soup Company.

Jon Shepodd did a good job in the role of Paul Martin. He enjoyed being in the show, however, his cooperation was not enough to stop the downward spiral of the show.

Another actor, George Chandler, was brought in as Uncle Petrie, to try and restore the ratings that Lassie once enjoyed. This did not help and the producers knew that something had to be done.

Cloris Leachman did not like being upstaged by Lassie and was difficult to work with. She and George Chandler did not like each other and that created more tension. The only two characters of the show that the public loved was Timmy and Lassie.

A decision was made at the end of the 1957/1958 season - Leachman and Shepodd were fired. Before the filming for the next season could begin, a new Paul and a new Ruth had to be found.

Actor Hugh Reilly, a Broadway stage actor, was found and hired to portray Paul Martin. The role of Ruth Martin went to June Lockhart, who had been in the movie The Son of Lassie in 1945. She had originally been offered the role of Ruth Martin before Leachman got it, but had turned it down. This time she accepted.

The change in the cast was exactly what the Lassie show needed. The television public loved the new cast and the ratings started climbing again. The best years of the Lassie show had its main characters in place now.

Because of the staying power of the Lassie show, by 1961 it was becoming harder to come up with episodes that revolved around the farm and Calverton. The writers then started using conservation as a theme embraced by Lassie and Timmy. Lassie had become an advocate for the environment.

As the Lassie show continued each year, the audience grew larger and larger. Campbell's profits had risen by a large margin, all due to the exposure that the Lassie show brought them. The Wrather Company reported in 1961 that more adults than children were watching the show.

By 1963, the Lassie show was number 13 in the ratings. But, by that year, a problem was developing that could not be stopped. Jon Provost was growing up and was no longer the little boy having adventures with his best friend Lassie. Timmy, by way of Jon Provost, was now a teenager.

Jon Provost did not sign a contract for another three years on the show. It was time to move on to other things. 1964 was his last year as Timmy. He had Lassie as a best friend and companion from 1957 - 1964.

In the last show of the season, the Martin family moved to Australia. Because of the quarantine laws, they could not take Lassie with them. With a broken heart, Timmy gave Lassie to the Martin's friend and neighbor Mr. Cully. Because of a series of events, Mr. Cully decided that the best place for Lassie was with Forest Ranger Corey Stuart, whom Lassie had met and grew to love in earlier episodes of the Lassie show. The stage was set for the next phase of the popular show starring the beloved icon, Lassie.

In 1964, the format of the Lassie show was changed. Gone were the days of life on the farm. As the viewership of the Lassie show was changing, Jack Wrather saw the need for the Lassie show to change with the audience.

In 1963, several episodes of Lassie were filmed that had a conservation theme. These episodes always garnered high ratings and showed Wrather that there was an audience for this type of show.

The U.S. Forest Service approached Wrather, wanting to be involved in this new format. As Lassie had been involved in different circumstances with a Forest Ranger - Ranger Corey Stuart - and these episodes were well received, Wrather decided to take the show in that direction.

Actor Robert Bray was cast as Ranger Corey Stuart, reprising his role in the five-part story entitled The Disappearance. In this story, Lassie and the Martins go camping at a large lake. Timmy and his father, along with Lassie, are out on the lake fishing when a ferocious storm hits. Their boat capsizes, thowing them all into the lake. Paul Martin and Timmy make it to shore, but they cannot find Lassie anywhere. After searching for days, the Martins finally have to leave for home - without Lassie. Meanwhile, Lassie has been rescued by Corey Stuart. Unable to find Lassie's owner, Ranger Stuart keeps Lassie and they have many adventures together. A bond is formed by the two and they become good friends. Eventually, Ranger Stuart finds out who Lassie's owners are and returns Lassie to Timmy. The Ranger is sad at giving her up, but knows he has to. Lassie is torn between staying with Timmy and going with the Ranger. She stays with Timmy, but the stage was set for the future of the show.

When the Martins left the farm for Australia, Lassie was given to a friend and neighbor, Mr. Cully. He eventually gave Lassie to Ranger Stuart, knowing that was where Lassie wanted to be.

Lassie and Ranger Stuart were together for four years, fighting fires, litter, and other environmental issues. From 1964 - 1968, Robert Bray portrayed good looking Ranger Corey Stuart. In 1968, he left the show.

After Robert Bray left the Lassie show, he was replaced with two Rangers, portrayed by Jed Allen and Jack DeMave. Lassie took turns being with each Ranger, going from location to location, and adventure to adventure.

In 1971, CBS decided that it was time to end the 17-year run of the Lassie show and cancelled it. Producer Jack Wrather decided otherwise and sold the show as a syndication package to CBS. Campbell's continued on as sole sponsor of the show.

For the first year of the syndicated run, Lassie had no human co-stars. She roamed from place to place by herself, interacting with different humans and animals.

In 1972, Lassie went back to a family type setting. She became an important part of the Holden ranch, interacting again with humans. This cast included Larry Wilcox, Larry Pennell, Skip Burton, Pamelyn Ferdin, Joshua Albee, and Sherry Boucher.

The ranch setting did not have the warmth of the Martin farm and was not well received. In 1974, after twenty years, the Lassie show went off the air.

When the show ended in 1974, Rudd and Lassie made personal appearances all over the country. At this time he started training the sixth-generation Lassie, knowing that he wanted to keep the Lassie line going. One never knew when there would be a call for Lassie for a new show.

Jack Wrather wanted to start filming a new Lassie show. This was titled Lassie: A New Beginning. CBS, NBC, and ABC all passed on it. It was not the old beloved Lassie show, so it was packaged as a television movie.

In 1979, a new Lassie movie debuted, entitled The Magic of Lassie. This charming story had a long list of stars: James Stewart, Mickey Rooney, Stephanie Zimbalist, and Pernell Roberts, and Alice Faye. It featured the musical talents of Debbie Boone, Pat Boone, and The Mike Curb Congregation. Although this movie did little more than break even at the box office, it is a beautiful story with some great music and some heartbreaking scenes.

For many years, there was nothing in the works for Lassie. Times and people had changed. They were no longer interested in a dog. The world had become a very fast-paced society and there just wasn't any place for a great dog and the lessons she could teach us.

In 1985, Rudd Weatherwax became ill and died. The reins of the Lassie legacy were passed to his son Robert and he took the challenge and did well with it.

In 1989, another Lassie series hit the airwaves. This one was called the New Lassie and was on the air until 1991. The stars were Dee Wallace Stone and Christopher Stone. Jon Provost was cast as Uncle Steve. Guest appearances were made by members of the old Lassie era. Roddy McDowell guest starred, as well as Tommy Rettig and June Lockhart.

In 1994, another Lassie movie hit the big screen. This one was Lassie: Best Friends are Forever. This movie starred Jon Tenney, Helen Slater, Michelle Williams, and Richard Farnsworth. The kids were portrayed by Thomas Guiry and Brittany Boyd. Again, this movie was a good one, showing the talents of Lassie 8/Howard.

Right now, there is not much going on with Lassie. The corporation that owns the Lassie trademark quit using the official Lassie 9/Laddie and opted to use another son of Lassie 8/Howard, named Hey Hey. This dog was never meant to be Lassie and he does not live up to the requirements set forth by the Weatherwaxes. He was just meant to be a pet of Carol Riggins, a trainer that was fired by Bob Weatherwax for insubordination.

There was another Lassie movie in 2005 that used a collie as Lassie that had no ties to the Weatherwaxes. This was the first Lassie movie made that broke the legacy of the Lassie line. This movie was a miserable remake of Lassie Come Home. There were no endearing characters and the script was very poorly written. The Loch Ness Monster was even used in the movie, which has no place at all in a Lassie movie.

Today the official Lassie is still owned by Bob Weatherwax, however, the corporate owner, Classic
Media, is using the corporate Lassie. Hopefully, someday, the real Lassie will return to its rightful place.

Pal was the first Lassie, first starring in Lassie Come Home in 1943. He was in all of the MGM Lassie movies, the last one being The Painted Hills in 1951. He also was Lassie in the pilot of the TV show in 1954.

In 1954, Lassie Jr. took over the role of Lassie from his father, Pal. He was Lassie from 1954 - 1959. He played all four years with Tommy Rettig as Jeff Miller, and also was Lassie during Timmy/Jon Provost's first year on the show.

Not actually considered one of the official Lassies, Spook took over the role from his father in 1959, after Lassie 2 was diagnosed with cancer. He was in the role for approximately six months until Lassie 3 was ready to take over in 1960.

Baby took over the role of Lassie in 1960 and stayed with Timmy through 1964. He then starred with Robert Bray in the first two years of the Ranger format, 1964 - 1966. He developed cancer in 1966 and died. Baby was the son of Lassie 2.

Mire took over the Lassie role in 1966 and was the star through the rest of the Ranger format. Mire was the son of Lassie 3.

Hey Hey took on the role during the syndication run of the Lassie show. When the show ended in 1974, his television career ended. After that, he made personal appearances all over the country. Hey Hey was the son of Lassie 4.

Boy starred in The Magic of Lassie in 1978. He also made personal appearances all over the country. Boy was the son of Lassie 5.

This Lassie starred in the series, The New Lassie, from 1989 - 1991. Rudd Weatherwax was training Lassie 7 when he became ill and died. The Lassie legacy then was handed to Rudd's son Robert. Lassie 7 was the son of Lassie 6.

Howard was probably the most beautiful of all the Lassie collies. His movie credit includes Lassie: Best Friends are Forever, released in 1994. He then went on to star in the Cinar Lassie series on Animal Planet. His father was Lassie 7.

Laddie officially became Lassie in 2000, taking over the reins from his father, Lassie 8. In 2003, Classic Media, the trademark owner, quit using him and started using another son of Howard/Lassie 8. This collie did not meet the strict requirements set forth by the Weatherwaxes and was never supposed to be an official Lassie. It was at this point that the magic of Lassie lost its luster.

Albert Payson Terhune was the most prolific writer of dog stories that the world has ever seen. He had three great loves in his life - his wife Anice; Sunnybank, his home; and the collies that brought joy in his life.

Bert Terhune was born in Newark, New Jersey on December 21, 1872. His parents were Rev. Edward Payson Terhune and Mary Virginia Hawes Terhune. His mother was a very prolific writer, writing under the name of Marion Harland. His sisters, Christine Terhune Herrick and Virginia Terhune Van de Water, were also published authors.

In 1865, the Terhune family acquired a tract of land on the east bank of Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, that they would make their future home on. Mrs. Terhune called the place "Sunnybank" and it would take a very prominent role in Terhune's collie stories. Sunnybank was also the home that Bert Terhune loved and would grow homesick for whenever he was away from it for any length of time.

Another of Terhune's great loves was his wife - Anice Stockton Terhune. She came from a politically motivated family, with one of her descendents being a signer of the Declaration of the Independence. Bert and Anice married in 1901 and lived happily together until Albert Payson Terhune died in 1942. Anice was considered very refined and wrote many songs. She also enjoyed writing and saw several books published.

The other love of Bert Terhune's life, and the one that brought him fame, was his collies. The famous collies of Sunnybank lived not only in real life, but on paper in countless magazine articles and in books, becoming real to the many fans that Terhune had worldwide. The collies of Sunnybank attained almost mythical proportions and Terhune can still draw one into the world of Sunnybank and make the collies come alive again just by the reading of his words and stories.

There were many collies that achieved great fame through Terhune's writings. Some of these were: Lad, Wolf, Bobby, Bruce, Gray Dawn, Fair Ellen, Jean, Treve, Explorer, Thane, and others. These collies achieved a worldwide fan base and people traveled from all over the country to Sunnybank to see the famous Lad and the other dogs.

The Terhunes, Sunnybank, and the collies are all gone now, but they still live on. Albert Payson Terhune will live till the end of time through his many books and articles. Sunnybank, the house, is gone, but "The Place" is now a memorial park where visitors can still go and visit the graves of the famous collies and walk where The Master and the Mistress once walked with their collies. The collies will still live on as we read the many stories about them and as we visit Sunnybank and honor their lives.

Albert Payson Terhune left a legacy for all collie lovers everywhere. It is our place to honor that legacy by loving the collies placed in our care.

The Romance of the Collie will go into detail on the life of Albert Payson Terhune and will feature many of the collies that lived at Sunnybank.